Next Decade Will See Number Of New EO Satellites Double

PARIS, FRANCEDefense and security requirements will continue to drive the commercial Earth-observation (EO) satellite data market for the next 10 years. In addition, revenue growth will be fueled by the growing commercialization of the industry and the data needs of emerging EO nations and private enterprise, concludes Euroconsult's report, "Satellite-Based Earth Observation, Market Prospects to 2019."

In the next decade, 230 EO satellites will be launched for a manufacturing market value that is expected to reach $19.9 billion from 2010 to 2019 (see figure). This compares to only 107 satellites in the previous 10 years. (These figures do not include 50 and 28 meteorology satellites, respectively.) EO commercial data sales are expected to rise at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15 percent, reaching $4 billion annually by 2019.

Emerging and in-development space programs will account for 75 satellitesa fourfold increase over the previous decade. A total of 41 nations are expected to have an EO satellite in operation by 2019 versus only 26 today. According to Euroconsult, in-development and emerging programs will account for 21 percent of the total $19.9-billion EO satellite manufacturing revenues. Because these countries often lack an established satellite manufacturing infrastructure, however, such growth could translate into significant export opportunities for manufacturing host nations in the form of direct procurement or technology transfer. For more information, visit www.euroconsult-ec.com.